


This Love Is Good, This Love Is Bad...

by darkestnight22



Series: All You Had To Do Was Stay [5]
Category: GOT7
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Best Friends, Break Up, Brothers, Getting Back Together, Jaebum isn’t as much of a dick as we thought, M/M, Sequel, THIS IS A CONTINUATION/SEQUAL/PART OF A SERIES
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-25
Updated: 2019-07-05
Packaged: 2020-05-19 10:32:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19355221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkestnight22/pseuds/darkestnight22
Summary: Jaebum slid to the floor as the phone in his hand went to voicemail for the sixth time. He knew he had fucked up, but he had never intended for it to get this far. He muffled a scream into his hands. This isn’t what he had had in mind six months ago.Jaebum’s perspective of the last six months.





	1. These hands had to let it go free...

**Author's Note:**

> I am still not an experienced writer, and this is still unbeta'd. Feel free to comment!!

 

Jaebum slid to the floor as the phone in his hand went to voicemail for the sixth time. He knew he had fucked up, but he had never intended for it to get this far. He muffled a scream into his hands. This isn’t what he had had in mind six months ago. 

 

 

There had been rumors of a producer getting promoted at the studio for weeks. Everyone expected it to go to one of the senior producers, so when Jaebum was the one called in to speak to his boss, he was surprised. They had felt like his material wan exceptional since he joined the company, and since he has had multiple melon charting songs in the past year, they decided to promote him to head producer. The former head producer decided that the position was too demanding for his growing family and gladly stepped down. Jaebum’s new position came with a significant raise, as well as a personal studio all to himself. He now reported directly to the companies VP/head of album production. 

 

Having a stable job and a significantly increased income made Jaebum excited for the future. He now has the option of choosing his own hours and is able to produce that kind of music that he wants to. 

 

The idea comes to him about a month after his promotion, he happened to be on a call with his brother when it hit him. 

 

“So you are almost four months away from finishing your degree, are you sure you don’t want all of us to fly out for your graduation?”

Youngjae just sighs, “no Hyung, flying out to LA is a lot of time and money. I don’t think any of you guys can afford to miss that much work... I’ll be back a few weeks after it, so you won’t have to miss me too much!”

“Why can’t you come home right away? Graduation isn’t normally that late in August, why are they keeping you so long?”Jaebum was pouting at this point.

“I didn’t want to graduate early without taking my certification exam, but since I’m an international student my results have to get sent back to SU in order to make sure they match up with the Korean certification requirements. International students have a later graduation date.*” Youngjae gets distracted by someone speaking to him in the background, he replies to them before turning back to his conversation, “ And I have to pack up my apartment and ship it all back to Seoul. Is it still cool with Jackson that I crash at your place until I find an apartment?”

Jaebum smiles, “yes, of course it is! Jackson and I wouldn’t have you staying anywhere else!”

As Youngjae begins to speak again a lightbulb goes off in Jaebum’s brain, “Youngjae, I’m sorry to interrupt but something has come up, I’ll need to call you back” and with that, he hangs up.

Immediately after hanging up he shoots Mark a text asking to meet up for lunch that afternoon.

 

 

April in Seoul is cold, and today it happened to also be wet. Mark and Jaebum had decided to meet at a little cafe that was the halfway point between their jobs. Jackson also seemed to have heard about their lunch meeting, as they were both already seated when Jaebum arrived. 

Mark was quick to wave him over, and allowed him to take his seat before asking, “so what was so important that you needed to speak to me about it in person?” He paused before also asking, “does this have anything to do with what you asked a few months ago?” 

Jackson looked between the two of them, he had no idea they had spoken in private a few months ago. 

“Yes and no, I still plan on proposing,” Jackson let out the loudest gasp known to mankind, “but I have something else I wanted your opinion on.” Jaebum paused to give Jackson some time to react. 

“You’re going to PROPOSE?!!” His shout had almost the entire cafe looking in their direction.

“Jackson! Will you be quiet for a minute, I need to know what Jaebum needs my help with.” Mark chastised.

Jaebum cleared his throat, a large blush spreading across his face from the attention of the room, “ well? I had been thinking about the future lately, and Youngjae just gave me the idea, why if I get a house built for the two of us? We’ve spoken about everything we want in a house, and I’m sure that I could make it perfect...” Jaebum trailed off at the look on Mark and Jackson’s faces. 

They both had unreadable expressions, before Jackson’s face broke into a grin “ that sounds absolutely AMAZING!! Gosh, you are seriously romantic!” He turns to Mark, “isn’t that the most romantic thing you’ve ever heard?”

Mark sighs, also starting to smile, “yes Gaga, it is absolutely romantic, but Jaebum,” Jaebum raises his gaze from where he was inspecting the table, “are you sure you’re both ready for this step?” 

Jaebum nods determined “I’ve never been more ready in my life, I just wanted to talk to you,” He looks at Jackson,” both of you because this is something that affects everyone. I figured once we move out the two of you can pick an apartment and Youngjae can take over the other.”

“Youngjae?” Mark sounded confused. 

“Yeah,” Jackson looked sheepish, “did I forget to tell you? Youngjae is coming back into town around Jinyoung’s birthday. Hey! Why don’t you time it all perfectly so that when Youngjae gets in just in time for Jinyoung’s birthday, you can give both him and the house to Jinyoung as a present! And then when you take Jinyoung to the house for the first time you can pop the question!!!!”

“Gaga that-“ Mark cuts himself off “that’s actually a really good idea...”

“Aw, thanks, Markiepooh- Hey! Wait a minute! What do you mean actually? I have great ideas all the time!” Jackson is starting to work himself into a rant, but Jaebum is quick to stop him before he really starts.

“That doesn’t sound half bad Jackson, but I’ll need to discuss this with Youngjae so that we can time it perfectly.” Jaebum glances at his watch, “ I have to get back to work, but I’ll call you and let you know when I have more planned out. I’ll also need to contact a real estate agent before we can make any other plans.” 

He stands and makes his way around the table, bidding both of his friends goodbye.

 

By the time three months post promotion had rolled around construction on the new house was underway and the plan was going smoothly, well mostly. Jinyoung was still oblivious to the plan, and he had no idea that Jaebum was able to pick his own hours now. Jaebum felt guilty for leaving his boyfriend in the dark, but he didn’t want to ruin the surprise. As it was, he’s had an engagement ring sitting in Jackson’s bedside table for almost four months now. It’s a wonder how Jackson hadn’t found it before the cafe meeting. 

He had to get creative with his excuses, making sure to go check on the house and construction only when Jinyoung thought he was working.Keeping this a secret along with working full time with idols on their latest albums was starting to take a toll on Jaebum, but he knew he couldn’t stop now. He resigned himself to short dates with Jinyoung, spending afternoons or nights with the man he loved before rushing to make sure everything else is going smoothly.

 

By five months post promotion Jaebum was exhausted. There had been some minor complications with the house that he had to take more spare time to smooth out, and he had to set up a plan with Youngjae for his flight home. They decided to have him fly in the day of Jinyoung’s birthday in order to keep Jinyoung from finding out about the plan. He seems to have gotten more suspicious, and the excuses Jaebum was using are wearing thin. He can’t wait for all of this to be over.

 

The week of Jinyoung’s birthday was hectic. Jaebum had spent days making sure that the house was perfect, moving in all of his personal items and furniture, but still leaving room for Jinyoung’s things. In the meantime, the things Youngjae sent ahead were situated in Jaebum’s old apartment very nicely. He just has to avoid any guests until after Jinyoung’s party, so they don’t notice anything wrong. 

 

The actual day of Jinyoung’s birthday was stressful to begin with. Jackson was supposed to bring Jaebum the ring so that he could put it in the new house, but he had forgotten it on the count because he was running late. Then, the production team meeting that he was required to go to for a new group that was debuting ending up running late, so he was running late to head to the airport. Finally, even though he was running late, it didn’t matter because Youngjae’s flight had been delayed. At first it was only an hour, but by the time an hour had gone by it had been delayed another and another and another until he had been stuck at the airport for hours waiting on Youngjae’s flight, only to be told that it would arrive first thing tomorrow morning and that he should leave and come back. So frustrated with the day, Jaebum ended up driving back to his house in silence before calling Jinyoung to wish him a Happy Birthday. 

The phone rings twice before Jinyoung picks up, “hello?”

 

Jaebum is silent for a minute before answering, ”Happy Birthday Jinyoung” 

 

“Jaebum” Jinyoung sounded worn out. Jaebum felt even more guilty that he did before.

 

“I’m sorry I didn’t make it tonight... things have been crazy at the studio. They just hired another producer and I couldn’t leave a stranger alone to work in my space... I had to supervise.” Jaebum starts to explain. 

 

He could hear Jinyoung sigh on the other end of the line, “I understand how much this means to you, but I’ll make it up to you I swear-“ Jinyoung cute him off.

 

“I’m sorry too”

 

Jaebum makes a confused noise, trying to figure out what on Earth Jinyoung could be sorry for. 

 

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can keep doing this anymore.”

 

Jaebum tried to interject “Jinyoung I-“

 

Jinyoung just continues “I’m sorry but I don’t think I can handle being the only one who puts effort into our relationship. This isn’t the first date you’ve missed, and maybe if it was just a date I wouldn’t have been upset. I think we need to take a step back and reevaluate what we want out of this relationship. Maybe you’re not ready for commitment.”

 

Jaebum is quick to argue “Jinyoung, do you even know what you’re saying? I haven’t missed that many events, why are you overreacting so much?”

 

“Overreacting? Jaebum we haven't been on an actual date in almost two months and we haven’t spent more than an hour in each other’s presence in twice that!”

 

“Jinyoung-“

 

“And for the record, you’ve canceled about 4 dates and stood me up on just as many, so don’t say I’m overreacting.”

 

Jaebum is silent. 

 

“And Jaebum?”

 

He grunts.

 

“Happy Anniversary” Jinyoung hangs up.

 

Jaebum slid to the floor as the phone in his hand went to voicemail for the sixth time. He knew he had fucked up, but he had never intended for it to get this far. He muffled a scream into his hands as tears began to stream down his face.


	2. This Love came back to me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jinyoung interrupts him before he can get too far, “Yah! Im Jaebum, are you insane? You’re completely soaked! Get inside, I’ll grab you a towel and a change of clothes.” He completely steamrolls over Jaebum’s explanation.
> 
> “Jinyoung-“ Jaebum was desperate. He couldn’t let their relationship go down like this.
> 
> “Jaebum...Come on, we’ll talk later” with that Jinyoung turned around and disappeared down the hall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hurray an update! I’m so happy with how much attention and love this series has gotten! I’m sorry that it took so long for the actual update to happen, I’ve been so busy this last week. The next chapter should be up before the end of the week. I am still not an experienced writer and this is still not beta’d. Please comment!

When Jaebum opened his eyes the next morning he was surprised that he had fallen asleep in the first place. He was still slumped on the floor, leaning against the front door of the house. Next to him was his phone, which happened to be the reason he woke up. He was getting a call from Mark.

He sighed quietly before answering, "Hello-“

Mark cut him off, ”I don’t know what happened, and I don’t really care right now. You fucked up. Big Time. Fix it, or there will be hell to pay-“

Marks threats were interrupted by Jackson taking the phone out of his hands, “Mark might not want to know, but I sure as hell do! What happened yesterday?” there was a slight scuffle from the other end of the line, probably Mark trying to get his phone back, ”You’ve been keeping this under wraps for months, don’t tell me you chickened out?”

Jaebum wiped a hand down his face, trying to collect his thoughts, “ Youngjae’s flight had been delayed, it doesn’t get in for another...” he looked at the watch he had forgotten to take off, “ hour at least. I’m going to shower and change, and then go pick him up from the airport.”

Mark had taken the phone again while Jaebum had been speaking, “ oh fuck... Look, I know that I said to fix this, but you should give Jinyoung a few hours to get his thoughts together, he was really upset last night... Go get Youngjae and take him out for breakfast and back to the apartment, let him know what’s going on.” Mark took a deep breath before continuing, “Hyunjin slept over at our place last night and was still clinging to Jinyoung when we left for work a few minutes ago. It might be best if you wait until he leaves, the kid might actually attack you if you make Jinyoung cry right in front of him. As far as I know, Jackson and I are the only ones who know about the situation, as far as any friends or coworkers know you ended up stuck at work yesterday... Good luck man”

Mark hangs up before Jaebum can say anything else.

 

Jaebum sighs, finally standing up from the floor and stretching his arms above his head... time to get ready.

He tries to ignore the sinking feeling in his chest as he heads upstairs to the master bedroom. This house looks so empty with only his things to fill it. He stopped for a second to observe himself in the mirror. He looks like a mess, the clothes he was wearing yesterday are crumpled and his hair is sticking up in every direction from how many times he’s run his hands through it. His eyes are bloodshot and his face is puffy and blotchy. He washes his face hoping for that to help. He gathers his clothes for the day and moves to shower quickly. 

As he stands under the scolding spray his mind wanders back to the conversation last night. Did Jinyoung really think he wasn’t ready for commitment? Had they really grown so distant in these last few months? He unconsciously turns off the water and begins to dry off.

It takes him almost no time before he’s dressed and reaching for his keys. 

 

The drive to the airport isn’t long, but he doesn’t have much to keep his thoughts at bay. 

How could he have missed this? In his efforts to show Jinyoung that he wanted to spend the rest of their lives together, he ended up pushing him away. He hadn’t realized that he had canceled so many times because of the construction. And Jinyoung doesn’t even know about it! What the hell must he think Jaebum’s been doing all this time, does he think Jaebum’s been cheating on him? 

Soon enough he’s parked in the pick-up lane with only a few other early risers to keep him company.

God, and Jaebum had said that he was overreacting. Jaebum scrubs his hands over his face, trying to get his thoughts together. Jinyoung had had completely valid concerns, and he disregarded them completely.

 

Jaebum hops out of his car and pulls out his phone to check his texts. Still nothing from Youngjae (or Jinyoung)... 

Jaebum leans against the passenger door to his car, looking at the monitor the airport posted flight times on above the doorway. His flight already landed, he should be through customs already, why hasn’t he sent something? 

Just as Jaebum began to worry, Youngjae basically runs through the sliding door, his luggage trailing behind him wobbly. 

 “Hyung! You’re here!!” Youngjae drops the handle to his suitcase as he approaches, launching himself at Jaebum.

Jaebum catches his brother dutifully, “I’ve missed you kid.” 

 As Youngjae is put back down he notices that Jaebum is alone, “Where’s Jinyoung-Hyung? I figured since his birthday’s over you’d both be here to pick me up.” he sounds confused.

 “There’s a lot that’s been happening. Let’s go grab breakfast and I’ll tell you all about it.” Jaebum sighs, moving to pick up Youngjae’s abandoned luggage. 

 

After the everything’s fit into the trunk, Jaebum and Youngjae make their way to an old diner near SU campus. It was a favorite of the groups back when they were all still studying, almost a replacement for the restaurant back home. 

After they were seated and ordered Jaebum began to explain the situation, “to start off with, you can’t be mad that I didn’t tell you. You’re a blabbermouth that spoke to Jinyoung on a weekly, if not daily, basis,”

“I am NOt a blabbermouth!”

“Yes you are-“ Jaebum avoids a swipe from Youngjae, “Anyway, the thing is that, as part of Jinyoung’s present, I had decided to have a house built for the two of us. I figured you wouldn’t mind having the apartment to yourself, so I started the plans around six months ago.”

Youngjae nodded along.

“I got so caught up in making the house perfect for Jinyoung, I didn’t realize that I was beginning to neglect him. I ended up missing a ton of dates to make sure the house turned out all right”

“Oh!” Youngjae’s face had lit up, “ so Jinyoung’s not here because he’s moving his stuff into the new house today!”

Jaebum grimaces, “ not exactly... so I had decided to pick you up and then head to the party after. Jinyoung hasn’t heard about you or the house yet because I spent hours at the airport yesterday waiting for you.”

Youngjae frowned from across the table, “ about that, Hyung... I’m so sorry that my flight was delayed for so long. There had been heavy storms over the pacific, we ended up turning south a few hours in... we landed in Hawaii for the night and flew back out once it had cleared up a bit.” Youngjae looked guilty. 

“Jae, it wasn’t your fault... you can’t control the weather. Please don’t blame yourself for your flight getting delayed.” Jaebum was quick to reassure his brother there was no need for him to feel guilty. 

They’re interrupted by the arrival of their breakfast. They both take a minute to get situated and start eating.

“Anyway, I missed the party and Jinyoung was very upset. We had a small argument and are currently in a rocky position-“ Rocky didn’t even begin to cover the situation, but Jaebum didn’t want to worry his brother by saying they had split. There was no way he was walking away from Jinyoung without a fight. 

 Jaebum took a large bite of his breakfast 

Youngjae looked stunned as he watched his brother eat. This was way worse than he could have imagined, just from the look on Jaebums face he could tell that whatever dispute the couple had had wasn’t small. 

Jaebum was quick to change the subject after that, asking about how Youngjae had been while abroad. They had been in contact frequently, but it was always nice for Jaebum to hear his brother talk. 

 

As the two finished up their meal and headed back to the car, they noticed rain beginning to fall.

“Alright,” Jaebum looked at Youngjae from his place behind the wheel, “ We are going to head to the apartment, I’m going to drop you off and show you the access codes and how to get in, then I’m going to find Jinyoung and fix this mess, sound good?”

Youngjae nodded turning to look out the passenger window. “Your apartment is almost 45 minutes from here, right?”

Jaebum frowned out the windshield “maybe longer if this rain doesn’t lighten up..”

The rest of the drive was filled with Youngjae fiddling with the radio and more babbling about his time abroad. He tried to keep Jaebum’s mind off of heavy topics. 

Took them almost an hour to get to the apartment, and another 20 minutes for Jaebum to show Youngjae how to access it and introduce him to the security on duty today. It wouldn’t help if security didn’t know who the new tenant was. 

 

By the time Jaebum had gotten back on the road, the rain had gotten worse. What should have been a 20-minute drive took almost 45 minutes to get to Jinyoung’s apartment building. 

 It was still pouring as he exited his car and headed for the building. He could feel his heart racing as he nodded to the security guard posted on the first floor. The security was one of the reasons Mark and Jinyoung had picked this complex in the first place. By now all of the guards on rotation were familiar with each member of the group, so no one stopped him on his way to the elevator. As he walked through the lobby he left a trail of water in his wake.

His hands were beginning to shake as he pressed the buttons, was it from nervousness or the cold? Jaebum didn’t know. Time seemed to drag on as he waited for the doors to open. Then he had to wait for the elevator to move, and as each second passed he grew more and more anxious. By the time the doors had opened on Jinyoung’s floor Jaebum was almost ready to bolt down the hall. He leaves a small puddle behind as he walks towards Jinyoung’s apartment.

 

As he stares at the door he’s faced with a choice. He has a key, he could walk in and demand Jinyoung talk to him... No, bad idea. If Jinyoung doesn’t want to talk, he doesn’t have to. Jaebum will wait however long it takes, but he won’t invade his privacy, especially after the call from last night. 

 

As he finally knocked on the door, he nervously bounced on the balls of his feet. He’d probably have to talk fast so Jinyoung wouldn’t close the door in his face.

Jaebum waits a few seconds before knocking again. He could hear movement on the other side. 

As the lock clicks and the door begins to open, Jaebum can hear Jinyoung beginning to speak, "I’m sorry Mrs.Lee we don’t have-"

 

“Jinyoung” Jaebum was quick to interrupt if only to announce that he wasn’t, in fact, Mrs.Lee.

“Jaebum?” Jinyoung stands frozen in the doorway. He looks like he just rolled out of bed. He’s wearing sweatpants that must’ve been Jackson’s, or maybe Mark’s? Jaebum thinks he would’ve looked gorgeous in anything.

“Jinyoung I really need to talk to you. I have made such a stupid mistake. I can’t even begin to explain but-“Jaebum starts rambling, trying to get as many words out as possible. He needs to tell Jinyoung what was going on before he decides to slam the door in Jaebum’s face.

Jinyoung interrupts him before he can get too far, “Yah! Im Jaebum, are you insane? You’re completely soaked! Get inside, I’ll grab you a towel and a change of clothes.”He completely steamrolls over Jaebum’s explanation.

“Jinyoung-“ Jaebum was desperate. He couldn’t let their relationship go down like this.

 

“Jaebum...Come on, we’ll talk later” with that Jinyoung turned around and disappeared down the hall.

 


	3. This love is alive (back from the dead)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jaebum kneels infront of Jinyoung while picking up the box from the table.
> 
> “Jinyoung, there is absolutely no one I would rather spend the rest of my life with. I would give everything I have up if that meant I could be with you. I know that I haven’t been showing it lately , but I love you so much that it hurts sometimes, and you are the only person I want to raise a family with. Will you please consider marrying me?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woohoo an update! I think this is gonna be the last chapter of This Love, and I’ll just continue on in another part of the series. Speaking of the series, at the same time this is posted I’ll be posting a prequel based on the song Mine by Taylor Swift. It’ll include their first meeting and their first date, so feel free to check that out! 
> 
> Also, just a reminder that I am human and this is not beta’d, so please be kind with any comments or criticisms. Please let me know what you think!

Following Jinyoung into his apartment, Jaebum paused as he passed the doorway. He had almost stepped on whatever it was that Jinyoung had dropped. As he bent down to pick it up, he realized that it was one of his hoodies. His favorite hoodie, in fact. It had been missing for weeks. He had forgotten that he’d deliberately left it in Jinyoung’s room last time he had come over, it had been freshly washed and he had sprayed it with his cologne. Jinyoung always said that his hoodies were the best when they smelled like him...

 

While Jaebum was lost in his thoughts, Jinyoung had reentered the room. He froze at the sight of Jaebum holding the hoodie. He hadn’t meant for him to know that he had been crying over it. He quickly cleared his throat to get Jaebum’s attention. 

“Here are some clean clothes and a towel,” he handed over a bundle, “you know where the bathroom is, warm-up and then we can talk” 

Jaebum grabs the bundle, his hands lingering for just a second before moving towards the bathroom. As he closed the door he realized that the clothes were sweatpants and a white t-shirt he had left here in the past. He’s quick to shower again and change, he hadn’t realized how cold he was, or how much he had been shaking. 

As he moves to exit the bathroom, he pauses, it’s now or never. He takes a deep breath before turning the handle and walking out.

 

While Jaebum had been in the shower Jinyoung took it upon himself to heat up more of the hangover soup, knowing that Jaebum would most likely still be cold, even after a warm shower. He glanced at the clock, it was near lunchtime anyway. 

 

As Jaebum entered the kitchen he could hear Jinyoung talking to himself, “I mean it’s not like you were just crying hysterically into one of his sweatshirts for an hour or anything? God Jinyoung you’re such a moron. What the hell is he even doing here anyway?” 

Jinyoung sighs from his place near the stove and Jaebum takes it as a sign to announce his presence.

He coughs.

Jinyoung jumps, not having seen him, “sit down, I’ll bring you a bowl in a minute, you’re probably starving.”

Jaebum moves to protest, to tell Jinyoung that he has just eaten breakfast when his stomach growls. 

Jinyoung’s face grows softer, “ See, it’s almost lunchtime now anyway.”

“Lunchtime?” Jaebum hadn’t realized how much time had passed.

“Yes, now sit.” Jinyoung’s tone left no room for argument. 

As Jaebum sits down he can’t help noticing how clean everything was, like eerily clean, almost like- 

“Jinyoung, were you stress cleaning again?” 

Jinyoung turns red from Jaebum’s lack of tact, “I don’t see how that’s any of your business”

At that remark, the tension in the room grows. As both begin to eat they wonder what to say. Neither of them knows how to approach the conversation that needs to happen. 

 

They both take a deep breath at the same time.

“So-“ “So-“

Jinyoung pauses for a moment, “You can go first, I’ve said my piece already.”

Jaebum releases the breath he had been holding. Jinyoung was willing to let him talk. 

 

“I have been an absolute moron these last few months,” Jinyoung scoffs at Jaebum’s very obvious statement. “Just not in the way that you think.” 

Jinyoung begins looking confused. 

“About six months ago is when I got my promotion, and with that promotion, I was able to pick who I worked with and what we worked on,” Jaebum knew he had to come clean completely, “ as well as what hours that I wanted to work” 

Jinyoung’s face turns from confused to heartbroken in seconds. If he could choose his hours, why the hell didn’t Jaebum spend more time with him? 

Jinyoung moves to speak, but Jaebum stops him, “and before you start to get upset, I had a very good reason for doing what I did. I wasn’t going to tell you because it was a surprise. Actually, it was a surprise that’s been almost seven months in the making” 

Jinyoung continues to grow confused, Jaebum’s just talking in circles now. 

“To start from the beginning, about seven months ago, give or take a few weeks, I approached Mark in order to get some help and guidance.” As he began speaking he pulled two small boxes from his pocket and placed them on the table. “About a month after that meeting, Youngjae and I had a phone call about him returning home, and that had given me another idea.” He slid the boxes across the table towards Jinyoung, who is still confused with what this has to do with Jaebum becoming a terrible boyfriend. “I met up with Mark and Jackson to get the plan sorted out and moving” he gestures for Jinyoung to open both boxes, “ and we began working on a house for the two of us almost five months ago...” 

Tears began streaming down Jinyoung’s face as he opened the bigger box, revealing a key with a bow. 

“I had wanted everything to be perfect, so we spoke to Youngjae and got him to agree to fly in on the afternoon of your birthday, and Jackson’s been keeping that,” he gestures to the unopened second box as he stands“ for me since the construction began. I had hoped to take you to the new house before I asked but,” Jaebum kneels in front of Jinyoung while picking up the box from the table. 

“Jinyoung, there is absolutely no one I would rather spend the rest of my life with. I would give everything I have up I that meant I could be with you. I know that I haven’t been showing it lately, but I love you so much that it hurts sometimes, and you are the only person I want to raise a family with. Will you please consider marrying me?” 

Jinyoung is seconds away from sobbing as he throws himself out of his chair and into Jaebum’s arms.

 

Jaebum carefully places the ring box back onto the table as he stands with Jinyoung in his arms. He moves them both into the living room, sitting on the couch with a sobbing Jinyoung in his lap. 

As he rubs Jinyoung’s back he begins speaking again, “So much has been happening with construction and proposal planning that I didn’t realize that I had been neglecting my boyfriend duties. There were a few hiccups in the construction that were eating up my free time. I had the building process streamlined by a private company in order to have it done on your birthday.” Jinyoung lets out a bigger sob into Jaebum’s neck.

“I am so sorry for putting you through that. I would never intentionally push you away. My actions these past few months have caused you so much pain, and I don’t think I can ever make that up to you.” Jinyoung wraps his arms around Jaebum’s torso, squeezing him tightly. 

“ as for yesterday, the plan had been to pick up Youngjae and surprise you at the party, but Youngjae’s flight ended up being delayed until this morning. I had no idea until after I had already spent hours at the airport. I ended up calling you when I got home last night, but we both know how that ended. So happy birthday, I got you a house. And happy anniversary, I want to spend the rest of our lives together” Jinyoung lets out a watery chuckle.

“You know that this doesn’t solve everything, right?” Jinyoung’s was quiet and hoarse from sobbing. “There was some miscommunication on both sides, but hurt like that isn’t going to heal overnight” 

Jaebum sighs pulling Jinyoung closer to his chest, “ it won’t, but that’s something we can both work on together because we have time" He leans back to look at Jinyoung’s face, "we do have time, right?”

“We have time” Jinyoung agrees, “ I don’t know how to live my life without you in it, it’s been less than a day and I felt like falling apart. I love you so much” he kisses the side of Jaebum’s face softly. 

 

As the two sit tangled together on the couch they continue to talk about their relationship, what these last six months have put them through and where they see their relationship going. Before they knew it hours had passed and their stomachs were starting to grumble again. Just as they were about to get up for something to eat, they heard the lock on the front door click. 

Both men on the couch watched as Mark carefully opened the door, most likely trying not to disturb the couple. He seemed oblivious to their presence until Jaebum cleared his throat. 

Mark jumped, clearly startled, “you scared the shit out of me!”

Taking in the scene in front of him, Mark let out a deep breath, “ thank god you two got your shit together. It was painful to watch both sides of the story and not be able to do something about it” 

Jinyoung smiles at his best friend, “we’re still not at 100%, but we’re getting there.” Jaebum lets out a chuckle.

“Speaking of getting here, Jackson stopped to pick up Youngjae from the apartment, and Hyunjin called us because neither of you was answering your phone. Both of them are coming over for dinner, which I just ordered some chicken,” Mark looks down at his phone, “it should be here in less than 10 minutes”

As Mark is telling the couple about their plans, Jackson walks through the door with Hyunjin and Youngjae. 

“Hyung!” “Jinyoung-Hyung” both boys were excited to see Jinyoung, who had just stood up from his spot on Jaebum’s lap. Both boys practically tackle him. 

“I’ve missed you so much!!” It was Youngjae who was speaking, Hyunjin just snuggled deeper into his brothers embrace. 

“Yah! What am I? Chopped liver?” Jaebum didn’t take well to being ignored. 

“Hyung!!” It was Jackson’s turn to yell, “ I’VE missed you, Hyung!! It’s been so lonely without you in the apartment!” Jackson runs across the room to leap at Jaebum. 

“Ah, Jackson, wait a sec-“ It was too late, Jackson was practically on top of Jaebum at this point. 

Jaebum tries to call out to Mark for help, “Hyung! A little help please?” 

Mark lets out a laugh as he gets a text to pick up his chicken in the building's lobby, “Sorry Jaebummie, I’ve gotta go grab the food real quick. I’m sure you’ll be fine.” And with that Mark exits the apartment.

 

In the meantime, Jinyoung has managed to detach the two younger boys from his body and is currently making his way into the kitchen to set the table for dinner. Following behind are his two loyal ducklings, waiting to help their favorite Hyung with whatever he needs. 

As Jinyoung turns to grab cups from the cabinet he addresses his brother, “ Huunjin, I’m surprised that you didn’t jump on Jaebum when you got here, it’s been a while since you’ve seen him.”

Hyunjin scoffs, “ he’s great, but you’re still my favorite! And there’s no way I’m getting near Jackson-Hyung while he’s in his octopus state.” He makes a face. 

Youngjae is quick to agree, “if there’s one thing I didn’t miss, it would be being smothered to death by Jackson-Hyungs muscles. We’ve both encountered it once already today, we’re not risking it a second time.”

Jinyoung barks out a laugh as Mark returns from grabbing the chicken. 

 

With the arrival of dinner, Jackson finally detaches himself from Jaebum. Their meal continues in relative peace...That is until someone brings up the new house. 

“So” It was Jackson who ends up starting the uncomfortable conversation, “ When fo you plan on moving into the new house Jinyoung?”

Jaebum starts to wave his hands behind Jinyoung’s back, desperately trying to get Jackson to stop without saying something out loud. As Jinyoung turns to look at Jaebum, he quickly places his hands in his lap as he tries to look innocent. 

“New house? Hyung I didn’t know you were moving! Why doesn’t anyone tell me these things?” Hyunjin is quick to question his brother. 

Jinyoung sighs, “no one told you because you have a big mouth,” he turns to look at Jackson, “ and that is a discussion that I need to have with Jaebum. When it becomes relevant, I’m sure the two of you will be told.”

 

Jinyoung quickly excuses himself from the table escaping to his bedroom. Jaebum is quick to follow, shooting Jackson a glare as he exits.

“Jinyoung?” Jaebum finds Jinyoung curled up on his bed. He takes a seat next to his boyfriend, wrapping his arms around him. “Hey, about what Jackson said, please don’t feel pressured into moving in. We literally have had a traumatic 24 hours and if you want to take it slow for a while, I completely understand.” 

Jinyoung groans as he turns to tuck his head under Jaebum’s chin, “That’s just it, this entire experience has been exhausting, but there’s nothing I want to do more than start the rest of our lives together in the new house. I’m just...” Jinyoung pulls back a bit to look Jaebum in the eyes, “ scared. I’m scared that you’re gonna wake up and realize this is a mistake. I’m scared that you’re going to pull away and I’m going to be left all alone in an empty house while you move on from your loser librarian ex-boyfriend. I love you so much, but I don’t want to get left behind again. I want to be cautious, but the only thing I want to do right now is go home, to  our  house and stay there forever.”

Jaebum curls his arms a bit tighter around Jinyoung, taking a few seconds to think over his words before replying. “I understand how you’re feeling, and I don’t ever want you to feel uncomfortable in our relationship. It’s going to take time to move on from this rough patch, but if we don’t try  to move forward we’ll be stuck in the same spot. I’m not saying that we should forget this ever happened and just keep going forward, but we should take this as a lesson that communication is the key to every relationship. I neglected you for months and pushed you away, but I was so focused that I had no idea that you felt neglected. We both need to make sure we’re on the same page and we both need to express our feelings about our relationship, whether it’s us feeling happy and content or it’s one of us feeling insecure or neglected or anything else. I want us to be healthy and happy, ok?” 

“Ok, but I want to make one thing clear Im Jaebum” Jaebum looks up confused, “ I would be happy to move in with you, and I would love to marry you, to start a family with you, to spend the rest of my life with you...”

 

After snuggling for a while a thought occurs to Jinyoung, “how were you originally planning on proposing to me?”

Jaebum blushes, hiding his face in Jinyoung’s hair, “well, I knew that there was a chance for rain, so the original plan had to be modified, but I had planned a living room picnic for the two of us?”

“A picnic? Like our first date?” 

“Yeah, Mark and Jackson said I should make the house and the proposal into one big thing, but I didn’t want to just ask you while giving you a tour of the kitchen. I was hoping it could be romantic. And I still ended up proposing in a kitchen, not even our kitchen.”

Jinyoung just laughs, “that’s so romantic, Jae. You’re such a sap, recreating our first date in the living room. I love you.”

“I love you too”

**Author's Note:**

> Oof, I feel like Jaebum just didn't want to tell his side of the story. This was originally going to have a sad ending, with Youngjae being the "other woman", but I couldn't do that to Youngjae. When writing this version I had had trouble figuring out why Jaebum was acting distant. I knew he was planning on proposing, but I felt like that wasn't something that would cause distance for MOnths. As far as the * and Youngjae's graduation goes, I have absolutely no idea how that works, and everything I wrote was bullshit (same with JB's job/promotion). Please leave feedback in the comments!! Thank you for reading so far!!
> 
> Twit & CC: @Darkestnight22


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